Victoria Nissan sells to Orr Motors of South Texas

Oct. 2, 2013 at 5:02 a.m.Updated Oct. 3, 2013 at 5:03 a.m.

Victoria Nissan on North Navarro Street is becoming Victory Nissan after being purchased by the Orr Auto Group, which also owns Victory Honda, Victory Kia and Victoria Buick GMC in Victoria.
Angeli Wright
for The Victoria Advocate

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Orr Automotive Group purchased Victoria Nissan for an undisclosed amount in a deal that closed Monday, said Mike Duff, a partner with Orr.

The dealership, 6003 N. Navarro St., will operate under the name Victory Nissan.

Duff said his company was looking to expand in the Victoria market and approached then-owner Travis Tadlock, with whom Orr Automotive already had a relationship.

Orr previously purchased a dealership Tadlock owned in Greenville.

"The timing was right for him," Duff said of the most recent deal. "That's how it came to be."

Tadlock, who purchased the Nissan dealership in December 2004, described the move as a win/win situation, in which both parties got what they wanted.

The Nissan dealership has called Victoria home since about 1980, Tadlock said. Through the years, it has operated under five different ownership groups.

He said he plans to remain in the community - his son is a freshman at Victoria West High School and wants to graduate there - but Tadlock is on the hunt for a business interest. His company's specialty, he noted, is taking "broken" dealerships and fixing them.

"Obviously, if we could find something close, that would be ideal," he said. "But I have a business partner, Hutch Pine, who's capable of moving if we find another location either somewhere else in the state or the country."

Tadlock, a Yankees fan, last weekend took his employees to Houston to watch his team battle the Astros. Pine purchased a bat emblazoned not only with the teams' logos but also etched with the words "Victory Nissan" and the dates they owned the dealership.

Jeff Vedrenne has worked at the Nissan dealership for 12 years and will stay on as controller with the new company, he said. While he noted all employees will remain on-board, he said emotions are mixed.

"Some people are happy; some are not so happy ... ," he said. "We're all sad about saying goodbye to the current owners but excited to meet the new ones."

Change will be minimal, Duff said, explaining the company plans to keep existing employees and operate in much the same way the company already does. The main upgrade - and it's a small one, he joked - comes with the signs.

"The 'ia' came off the building today. The 'y' goes up in the next day or so," he said Wednesday evening. "So it's not a total name change."

Orr Automotive Group has offices in Texarkana and Dallas, Duff said. It owns 20 stores, including Victory Kia, Victory Honda and Victory Buick GMC in Victoria.

Duff said the coming months should be exciting as the new company gets to work.

"We're looking forward to selling more cars and being part of the community," he said. "We're happy to be here."